Understanding Anxiety Disorders and How To Manage Them
Anxiety is a common emotion that many of us are familiar with. We may all experience it on certain occasions that may be stressful. This is why not all anxiety is an anxiety disorder. However, when anxiety builds up over time, and is ignored, it can manifest in different ways. There are some common ways how unprocessed anxiety manifests in our lives, and these are known as anxiety disorders. Anxiety Disorders can cause a great deal of stress while carrying out daily activities. Normally, anxiety is a helpful emotion that warns us when we are under threat. But when we experience excessive anxiety, it starts to take control over different parts of our life negatively. The key to managing your anxiety disorders is to understand them. In this article, we look through the different anxiety disorders, and ways you can manage them. Managing anxiety is essential to help you overcome anxiety disorders and lead a well-balanced and peaceful life. When Is An Anxiety Disorder Diagnosed? “Feeling anxious” is considered to be an anxiety disorder when your anxiety starts affecting your daily life. With Anxiety Disorders, anxiety takes the center stage of your life. You may spend most of your time managing or worrying about certain symptoms coming back. For anxiety to be considered a disorder it must be so much that it impacts your social and work life. With anxiety disorders like Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, you may worry about your intrusive thoughts. This may lead you to engage in compulsive behaviors. On the other hand with Panic Disorder, you may begin to worry if a panic attack may occur again. You may also begin to avoid public spaces due to your fear of getting a panic attack. This fear of public spaces is known as Agoraphobia. Excessive anxiety can manifest in multiple forms. Therefore, there are different types of Anxiety Disorders. Types of Anxiety Disorders The core feature of all anxiety disorders is unresolved anxiety. This anxiety can be overwhelming and deep-rooted, and we may be unable to process or sit with it. Therefore, our mind and body bring out various symptoms to distract us from the anxiety. These symptoms over time, turn into Anxiety Disorders. They are of the following types: Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Generalized Anxiety Disorder or GAD involves extreme fear or worry in almost every aspect of life. You may also experience certain bodily symptoms such as tiredness, muscle pain or stiffness, and a change in sleep and eating patterns. Social Anxiety Disorder: In this disorder, you may avoid social situations, or you may find social settings overwhelming. You may avoid speaking in public, socializing with people, or avoid eating in public. Panic Disorder: Panic Disorder involves repeated panic attacks. A panic attack is a sudden onset of extreme fear and distress in the mind and the body. It causes sweating, palpitations, chest heaviness, rapid breathing, and a fear of losing control or dying. It can be an extremely frightening experience, and it may make you worried about having another panic attack. Agoraphobia: Agoraphobia is a fear of being in public spaces. It is a fear of not being able to escape, or not receiving help. It could happen on its own, or as a result of a panic disorder. Agoraphobia with a panic disorder may cause you to worry about having another panic attack in public, and not receiving help. This can make you avoid getting out of your home, or you may only leave with a companion. Phobia: Phobias are fear of specific things, situations, or people. A fear is called a phobia when what you fear isn’t usually harmful. Some common examples of phobia are the phobia of blood, certain animals, insects, water, and flying. Separation Anxiety: This is the intense fear of being separated from a close one. If you experience separation anxiety, you may try to stay as close as you can with the close one. You may also worry if you may lose them, and may have nightmares of losing them. Thus, anxiety shows up in various forms which are broadly termed as “Anxiety Disorders.” To treat anxiety disorders, you will have to address the deeply rooted anxiety within you. It is only then you may find relief from the symptoms of anxiety. Medication for Anxiety Disorders: Is It Necessary? Whether medication is necessary for anxiety disorders or not depends upon the severity of the symptoms and the extent of dysfunction these symptoms bring to your life. Sometimes, you may deal with severe anxiety which may produce extreme symptoms. If these symptoms disturb multiple areas of your life, then medications become necessary. Medications help to treat and manage the symptoms of various anxiety disorders. Medications like benzodiazepines, for example, can help with the rapid heartbeat and anxiety during panic attacks. However, treating anxiety has a lot to do with regulating the nervous system. Medications only help the symptoms of the anxiety disorder and may be very necessary to manage the difficulty for a while. However, the deep rooted issues leading to the anxiety disorders can only be worked through by therapy and regular relaxation, meditation and other self-management practices. Are your anxieties holding you back? Counseling can be a great tool for you to manage and overcome your anxiety and lead a happy, stress-free life. We are here for you. Book an Appointment Counseling And Therapy For Anxiety Disorders At Inner Space, we believe that treating anxiety requires a multi-dimensional approach. Therefore, our therapists help you observe the underlying patterns of negative thoughts and beliefs, and regulate your nervous system and body through relaxation and somatic therapies. Learning to handle anxiety requires learning to process fears and sit with difficult emotions. These practices are crucial to overcoming anxiety and taking charge of your life again. A good and qualified therapist can help you stay with fear and process it. Therefore it is important to find the right therapist to help you through an anxiety disorder. Going for counseling can
Understanding Anxiety Disorders and How To Manage Them Read More »